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to.
    Sometimes his casual possessiveness got on my nerves. I hadn't dated anyone in the year since I broke up with him, but I bet if I brought a guy around, Jesse would flip out. Especially if the guy were a dark warrior disguised in a suit.
    I glanced at the table where the British guy had sat and was struck by a fresh wave of disappointment that he was no longer around.
    Just as well. He seemed like he'd be high maintenance. High maintenance was the last thing I needed.
    "Are you sure you're okay?"
    I blinked at Jesse. I'd forgotten he was there. "Just peachy."
    "You only use 'peachy' when you're anything but."
    Something that felt an awful lot like chaos rose in my chest—something that had nothing to do with tu ch’i but was just as uncomfortable. Swallowing the panic in its wake, I picked up a rag and wiped the counter.
    "I struck too close to home, huh?"
    Best to change the subject. I tossed the rag aside and tried to smile. "I wasn't expecting you tonight."
    His lips quirked at my obvious segue, but his eyes looked sad. He played along, though. "I heard the news through the grapevine and I came to celebrate."
    I froze as his words registered. He heard about the scroll? How? Did he see Wu? A shot of alarm coursed through me. I did a quick survey of the bar—it'd been a long time since Wu had made his presence known. Was he wreaking havoc behind my back?
    "Hey."
    I frowned at Jesse. "What?"
    "Sure you don't want to talk about it?" He traced the turned-down corner of my mouth. "You don't seem yourself. I thought you'd be more elated about the gallery show."
    The gallery show. Right. "Today's been a little overwhelming, to tell you the truth. How did you hear? I haven't told many people."
    He cocked one eyebrow.
    Right. How silly of me. He had connections.
    "Want to know what I had in mind?" His low, rough voice made me frown. I knew he used it on purpose—to bring us back to familiar, sex-without-strings territory. Hut it just sounded wrong. It was missing something. Like a British accent.
    Leaning on the counter behind me, I hid my discomfort behind a friendly smile. "Celebrate, huh? What were you thinking?"
    He reached out and took my hand, his gaze on my mouth. "I thought we could go back to your place."
    I could tell he was imagining kissing me. Sometimes when he didn't think I was looking, he'd get that look in his eyes, like he longed to get me naked again, but never as blatantly as right now.
    And it annoyed me. What part of I don't think we should see each other anymore was ambiguous? I was about to tell him he needed to back off when tu ch’i started to bubble up inside me, hot and molten.
    An image of Jesse lying on the ground, his dead gaze sightlessly accusing, popped into my mind. I recoiled with a gasp, tugging my hand out of his.
    He caught hold of my apron strings and pulled me forward before I could scramble away. "Tell me what's going on, Gabe."
    There was something in his eyes that I'd never seen before—something too serious. If I wanted to be honest, I'd admit that he'd been looking at me like that a lot lately.
    Honesty was overrated.
    The curse still rippled, but I didn't feel like it was about to erupt. Still, I wasn't going to risk touching him. I gently pulled my apron from his grip. "I've got to get back to work."
    Disappointment darkened his gaze, but he flashed his crooked bad-boy grin. "Maybe I'll stick around and walk you home. In case you change your mind."
    I sighed. "Jesse, I'm not going to change my mind."
    "I have a lot to offer, babe." The words were spoken casually, but I heard the loaded meaning behind them.
    Ironically, I was saved from answering by Vivian. Feeling her death stare boring into my back, I turned around right as she ducked behind the bar. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her bony elbow swing wide, aiming for my midsection, and deflected it. She was so predictable.
    "Hello Viv," I said sweetly.
    She glared at me, and I knew without a doubt that she'd witnessed my